Evolution of Gohan
by gokunion
Summary: The young son of Goku has awakened unexpected might at an unintended time in his life; as the world revolves in a different way, a new reality is born, and the evolution of Gohan commences in a different light...
1. Alteration

            "Piccolo?"

            Gohan kneeled beside his mentor and friend, tears welling up in his eyes as the laughter of the Saiyan Nappa continued to ring in the dusty air. Piccolo was dying…

            "Gohan…" Piccolo gasped, managing a weak grin; the Namekian looked horrible, Goku's friends – save Krillin – had perished, Nappa and Vegeta were going to win – yet Gohan could not think of anything beyond the dying sentient before him.

            "You're the only real friend I've ever had, and I want to thank you." Piccolo began in a hushed voice; Gohan could feel the Namekian's life force fading before him, purple blood dribbling from the alien's wounds. "I remember the first day I brought you here; you've changed so much since then. The harder things got, the more determined you became."

            Piccolo's words were coming out more forcedly now, straining as his energy continued to fade. Gohan choked back a sob, staring his watery eyes into his mentor's and nodding.

            "I'm proud of you." Piccolo smiled painfully, looking up at the boy he had come to be so attached to. He was fading away, and knew the young one would be left alone. Nappa continued to chortle. "And hey! Sorry I was rough on you – I knew you could take it."

            Piccolo coughed, his eyes losing focus on the world around him.

            "Piccolo!" Gohan sniffled, blinking; he could barely focus on anything, holding back his tears.

            "Get 'em… Gohan…" Piccolo muttered weakly. 

            And then, he was gone. Gohan was alone, strange emotions running through his body. He was alone.

            "No!" the boy screamed, stamping his fists into the dirt where Piccolo had been before. Knowing no way to express himself, the boy felt his tears shatter out onto his cheeks, the hot sun blazing down on him, Nappa's evil presence so near now. First his father had died, and now his friend, mentor and… surrogate father.

            Nappa had done this; he was a bad, evil man. Only anger could be felt in Gohan's veins, his heart pulsating with it, as did his energy.

            The boy stood up and stared at the bald, tall man before him; Gohan's teeth gritted as he tried to hold it back, he didn't want to feel the dark anger that was threatening to spill out, but Piccolo was dead, and that man had killed him. He could hold it back no more, but rather somehow focused it, feeling energy course into his physical body.

            "Ah!!!" Gohan screamed, shoving his hands to his forehead and focusing his energy as **Piccolo** had taught him.

            Vegeta stood silently, his arms folded, behind the bumbling idiot he called his remaining kin, the last of the true Saiyans. The prince's scouter began to bleep suddenly. 1,000… 2,000… Fuck! The little brat's power level was suddenly growing exponentially from where it had been to begin with. 

            "All right! Let's go!" Nappa sneered, setting his feet down and preparing for whatever the little kid was going to throw at him – not that it would do any damage, he snorted. At last the last of these stupid humans would be gone, and Vegeta and Nappa could go to Namek and retrieve the Dragon Balls to wish for immortality! All he had to do was crush the little squirt before him, kill the little bald man in the orange gi, and defeat the approaching fighter that Vegeta had detected earlier.

            "Nappa! Watch it! He's at 3,000!" Vegeta hissed, his face crunched with focus; the kid was still no match for Nappa, let alone the prince, yet it was alarming that someone could grow in strength so quickly. What kind of brat was Kakarot's kid?

            Nappa merely shook his head and continued to sneer; Vegeta's scouter had to be wrong, the kid's attack didn't look that harmful.

            Gohan could feel the black anger that had been boiling up inside beginning to ebb, as did the energy it was supplying him for his Masenko attack. 

            'No, I need more strength…' he winced; it was all he could gather, and he knew that he would have to throw his attack and hope against hope it would hurt – kill even – that bad man before him, lest the attack lose its power.

            "Masenko-Ha!" Gohan yelled, forcing the energy he had left over into the orb he had gathered, projecting it at Nappa. Nappa reached out a hand, effortlessly it seemed --- and sent the attack with a grunt into a mountain nearby, shattering it in an awesome explosion.

            And just like that, Gohan's energy rush faded with his anger, replaced by despair and weakness. The boy sank to the ground.

            Vegeta laughed lightly.

            "It seems that our prince has become a pauper again; his power level is back down!" the Saiyan breathed, masking the vanishing concern he had developed moments before. Nappa had to finish the boy and prepare for the growing sense of dread that Vegeta had in his mind; Kakarot was on his way, and if what the others had said was true, he would be a greater challenge than any of the other unexpected surprises – Vegeta did not want to be surprised anymore today.

            Gohan slouched down to his hands and knees. He had failed Piccolo; he didn't have the strength to beat Nappa, to save Krillin or himself, or anyone. He was nothing.

            "It's been nice knowing you kid!" Nappa laughed aloud in his whiny, booming voice; a shadow had fallen on the withdrawn Gohan, causing the boy to look up at the massive man of might above him – the man who had killed Piccolo and his father's friends.

            "Gohan! Get out of there!" Krillin's voice came from somewhere nearby, though Gohan did not look around; he was going to die, just as Piccolo had.

            "So long!" Nappa yelled, bringing his foot up and focusing his strength to his leg, preparing to bring it down.

            Gohan winced; this was it. At least he would see Piccolo again… but his father was on the way; Goku would arrive to find not only his friends but also his son gone. Goku would arrive and surely find Krillin, his oldest friend, killed as well. And Gohan could do nothing about it. Goku was so far away yet; Gohan could feel the gradually increasing presence of his father, just how Piccolo had taught him.

            'Piccolo! Daddy!' Gohan screamed in his head as Nappa's foot came down at him.

~*~*~

            Goku had felt a presence fade away into the other world, and then a surge of energy; he had no clue what was going on, as he had just left Korrin's, the flying Nimbus carrying him swiftly toward the South Desert where he felt the battle waging onward. 

            Another power grew and then faded rapidly; Goku knew that power – his son! His face knotted up and his eyes focused; Nimbus was pushing forward as quickly as it could, but to no avail! If only Goku hadn't stayed an extra few moments at King Kai's! If only he had been faster! 

            Gohan was going to die, and Goku had many miles left to traverse – he wasn't going to make it on time!

~*~*~

            "Piccolo! Daddy! No!" Gohan screamed aloud as Nappa's foot came in contact with his thrown-up hands.

            The boy felt an instant rush of anger, frustration, despair, grief, hatred flow through his body, the force of Nappa's boot crushing him into the ground – and then a flash of white hot light, and the pain from the falling foot was alleviated; Nappa was throw back onto his rear, smashing the cracked ground below him, his eyes rigged open with surprise and part-fright.

            "The hell?" the large Saiyan muttered; how had he been repelled? The boy was nothing, yet had managed to throw him back, and was now gathering strength before him.

            Vegeta likewise wore a look of confusion, mixed with determined concentration as his scouter ran wild.

            '3,000, 4,000 –'

            "5,000 Nappa! Watch out!" Vegeta shouted just as Gohan stepped a foot into the ground to take off, his eyes trembling with hatred.

            Nappa's eyes widened with disbelief as Gohan hurtled himself forward at the knocked-down warrior. To Gohan, suddenly nothing mattered more than **killing** the evil man before him, removing him for the evils he had caused; Gohan would avenge Piccolo's death.

            The air became a blur around him, and Gohan was suddenly **there**, right before Nappa and still flying, though everything slowed down, became more focused. He oddly heard Piccolo's instructions ringing in his head: focus your energy into your muscles, aim for your foe, and hit him; there is no trial, only success or failure…

            There was another flash, and Gohan's fist connected in a flash of white energy with Nappa's face; the Saiyan was spiraled into the air from his sitting position, his jaw shattered as his mind rang with disbelief. He barely had a chance to realize what was happening when Gohan had flashed about him in a streak of white and planted himself in the catcher's position.

            "Piccolo!" Gohan screamed vengefully, his body shimmering under more than the hot sun above; his energy was yet growing and glowing, though slowing its ascent. The boy threw out both of his hands together and let the hot, anger-fueled energy from his body.

            A beam of awesome white light erupted wide and clear from the boy's hands, and boiled into Nappa's right chest, face and arm, searing his skin and shattering his armor. The Saiyan was carried into the air, screaming with pain, screaming even more with confusion and frustration.

            "How?" Nappa gasped as the energy continued to carry him skyward, burning at his arm into the muscle and then bone, his face losing sensation beyond the prickling pain that had consumed it until it – and he – felt no more.

            Gohan felt his power continue to grow, gathered it and fed it to the attack; his mind was coming back to him, yet the anger, while ebbing, still remained in some way, feeding his strength. His wild mane of hair floated off of his back in the white energy that bathed him, his muscles nearly fifty percent greater in size than they had been before.

            And the energy was released from its source, Nappa was gone, dust blown from the premise in the wave of power that had transpired. Krillin stared through wide eyes, mouth hanging open, at the battlefield before his weakened body.

            Vegeta gawked at his scouter. What it read was impossible; no Saiyan runt could ever be that strong, especially after reading so weakly just moments before!

            "9,000!" 

            The prince forced his mouth shut, closing his shock inward rather than allowing anyone the pleasure of seeing it so obviously on his face. He had nothing to fear, the boy was still weaker than he, yet… 9,000 power levels? The son of Kakarot surely could not be so strong!

            Gohan found himself staring with a mix of satisfaction and awe at the spot where Nappa's fleeting form had just been before the boy's attack had whipped him from existence. He had done it! He couldn't believe it, but he had done it! The anger was nearly gone now, the grief of Piccolo's death hanging in the background. 

            His power did not leave with the anger, however, though it withdrew from glowing external warmth to hide within him.

            Gohan turned, his body feeling light as air, to face Vegeta, the Saiyan prince standing there with very narrow slits for eyes and arms folded tightly over his armored chest. The bottom of Gohan's stomach dropped again and he swallowed, his throat suddenly dry.

            Shouldn't the other Saiyan be at least impressed? Vegeta's friend had just been defeated; it would make sense for him to be in shock and awe as well, wouldn't it?

            Vegeta opened his mouth to speak, his eyes opening more as that glittering smile returned to their depths.

            "Well, well, well. Well-done, kid." He suddenly laughed, opening his arms to clap his hands bemusedly, making Gohan's strong stance waver with distrust and confusion.

~*~*~


	2. Psychology

            The flying Nimbus continued its puttering velocity, speeding through the clouds that it matched in shape and makeup, carrying the passenger Goku upon its back. Goku was not very pleased; indeed, the Saiyan hero of Earth was far from happy, as his focus was far from his physical being and focused intently on the battle far ahead.

            'What's going on up there?' Goku pondered internally, his eyes narrowed with distraught as he urged the Nimbus along silently; he had another couple of minutes left in flight, lest he try to fly the rest of the way on his own – the latter option would certainly drain more of his energy than he would be willing to lose.

            At first Gohan's unmistakable presence had faded, and the boy's father had been almost absolutely positive that Gohan would die. Then, inexplicably, an incredible power had taken the fade's place, erupting and destroying the lesser of the two evil Saiyan presences at the field.

            The sky suddenly cleared up, and Goku breathed a sigh of relief. Small clouds were dispersed all about, zipping behind the hero as he flew more anxiously forward. South Desert was below him, the region where the battle was occurring only a few miles ahead.

            Goku shoved aside his thoughts with a bitter taste in his stomach that he did not treasure as much as even Oolong's cooking; only Gohan, another familiar, weaker energy force, and an ominous, dark force he had associated with the stronger Saiyan foe remained. 

            "Only a couple more minutes… hang in Gohan, please!" Goku groaned, urging Nimbus onward.

~*~*~

            Krillin managed – only with the greatest of effort, he mentally frowned – to plant himself back on his feet, bracing a tender right shoulder onto a large dust-colored boulder, giving himself full view of the sight where something unexplainably amazing had just occurred. Gohan had somehow raged with power and become stronger and faster than anything the human warrior had ever seen. The energy Krillin felt from his best friend's son was… unbelievable! And yet the Saiyan that had given Nappa his orders (was it Vegeta? Krillin couldn't recall) was standing there so calmly. Hell, if Krillin had just seen his opponent do something like that, he would have wetted himself and ran for help or cover.

            Something was going on, and Krillin could only play audience.

            "That is some talent you have, son of Kakarot." Vegeta chuckled, taking a step forward and smiling a serpent's smile, causing Gohan to feel more uneasy than prior. "Talent like that is something I would expect from a Saiyan elite, not a low-level kid such as yourself."

            Gohan worked his jaw; he was at a loss for words; worse than that, he was at a loss for anything. What had just transpired was a blur in his memory, vague and without focus. Somehow he had gained so much strength so quickly – was this the power Piccolo had mentioned he had as a potential, nearly a year ago? 

            No course of action played itself in the 6 year-old's mind. Fighting battles and saving the planet in the absence of one's father was not something that occurred in Gohan's usual everyday life. Piccolo had taught him a lot, yes, but nothing about how to handle a bully alien who had just killed everyone he knew.

            'Daddy would know what to do…' Gohan frowned; Vegeta apparently took the pensive furrow on the boy's face for distrust (which was an emotion in Gohan's head, but not as dominant as lack-of-decision), and thus continued talking.

            "What, all action and no talk?" Vegeta sneered slightly; he wanted to get the boy to speak to him, so he bit back from any more acidic language lest he tempt the boy into worse straights.

            Kakarot's son was an enigma to the prince of Saiyans. How someone could achieve so much energy so quickly – and the grandson of a low-class warrior at that – was a mysterious threat to Vegeta, and he would not take it without a certain amount of thought. On one hand, he could achieve full power and crush the runt right here and now without any further action, but that seemed… wrong? 

            'You're getting soft, Vegeta.' The prince chuckled to himself. Soft was not the word he would normally choose, but it was the only appropriate one he would allot himself time to divulge in. Something felt wrong about destroying Kakarot's son so quickly. The boy at least deserved some sort of a fight with this sudden power.

            That much – the fact that this rush of power was sporadic and unexpected on Gohan's behalf – Vegeta was completely certain of; no child could display such shock and self-awe and be bluffing at that age. And where was that power previously, when Nappa had taken out his friends? Not even Vegeta would allow someone to destroy his fighting allies when he could prevent it – unless his allies were proving to be more of a strategic burden than aid.

            No, Vegeta would take a second option he saw quite clearly now: take the boy under his wing, and embarrass Kakarot with the loss of his own powerful son when he arrived.

            Vegeta grinned, whole-heartedly.

            "What's your name, boy?"

            Gohan balked a moment, and then narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

            "Why do you want to know?" Gohan struggled not stammer; what was the Saiyan doing? Something didn't feel right.

            Vegeta chuckled and began to slowly advance on Gohan, who stumbled backward a couple of feet, eyes opening with fear, before he forced himself to stand his ground, planting his feet. He wouldn't run; his father had to be here soon, he could hold off the Saiyan bad man a little longer.

            Vegeta had to restrain himself from laughing even harder at the boy's obvious fright at his walking forward. The Earthlings were able to feel energy signatures quite clearly and more easily – without a scouter – than anyone Vegeta had ever encountered. Apparently the boy felt Vegeta's awesome might.

            "Kid, I'm going to make a proposition. You know what a proposition is, right?" Vegeta stared, smirking.

            Gohan could feel anger boiling up.

            "Yes I know what a proposition is." Gohan growled back, his eyes glowering. Why was the Saiyan treating him like a child? Gohan had just killed his friend; Goku's son was no baby.

            "Well, before I can propose it, I would like for us to be formally introduced for a change, kid." Vegeta stated smoothly, coming to a stop no more than a meter from Gohan's short form, the boy's Namekian outfit making him stand out against the gray and brown dust that this Desert held in full.

            Gohan clenched his teeth, grinding them as he stared up the foot and a half above him into Vegeta's cold eyes. There was something in those eyes, the boy knew, something that Nappa did not have. Calculating intelligence? A cold heart? The boy did not have enough experience with life to know the answer to what now bothered him subconsciously from Vegeta's eyes.

            "Fine then. My name is Gohan!" the Saiyan boy nearly shouted, though Vegeta stood so close to him. He was afraid the man would attack him from close range – maybe that was what the Saiyan warrior was planning to do!

            "Vegeta." The alien held out a hand with the same expression on his face. Gohan warily extended his own.

            Searing pain shattered through Gohan's hand as Vegeta took a crushing hold of his right digits, causing the boy to half-scream, half-gag, suddenly struggling to break free. Vegeta was too strong!

            Laughing, Vegeta kept his firm grip on the boy's hand, though the child suddenly raged with anger and lashed out with his other hand, catching the prince smartly on the cheek, leaving a stinging mark and ceasing his laughter.

            "Lesson one, kid." Vegeta began, smashing his free hand into Gohan's gut, knocking the wind – and fight – out of him. "Don't trust a stranger unless you're 100% certain that you can."

            Gohan groaned and gasped for air, his eyes wincing though managing to spit daggers at the man who held him; he knew he shouldn't have trusted Vegeta!

~*~*~

Nearby, Krillin struggled to remain still and not cry out; for all the human fighter knew, Vegeta had forgotten about him, and he could lend what little strength he had left when he was most needed. Until then, Krillin was useless, trapped in his spot to remain vigilant watch.

            Out of nowhere, there was a flicker – and then a flash – in Krillin's mind, causing him to literally spin about with effort and stare at the void of pale blue sky above and north of him as his motion kicked up a small cloud of dust.

            'Goku!' he choked, remembering he shouldn't give away his presence to the show that was transpiring nearby. But he knew that ki from anywhere!

Goku was finally here!

~*~*~

            "Lesson two, boy." Vegeta grinned, holding Gohan up and away from him, lest he try something stupid again. "Never attack your captor when you know him to be stronger than you. You have a brain, I presume, unless you inherited that – unlike your power level – form your low class ancestry."

            Gohan twitched; there was no way he could get away from Vegeta in this position, his right hand was pinned painfully in the elder's fist, and the only extremity the boy could strike him with was his legs – unlike the other Z-Senshi members, Gohan did not know how to project energy from anyplace other than his palms, nor did he see the almost painfully – as painful as his hand was now – obvious target of Vegeta's arm.

            Such was the psychologically chosen aim of Vegeta, whom grinned at the boy he held before him.

            "Now then, Gohan, I seem to get the feeling that you are a smart little boy, are you not?" Vegeta began, his scouter reading a nearly steady 8,900 on the boy, whose energy occasionally surged upward a few levels but then leveled off – as would be expected. So long as Vegeta did not cause too much emotional duress, he hypothesized very little from the boy in counterattack.

            Gohan swallowed and tried to compose himself – he would not let the sneaky bad man see him at his worst. Piccolo wouldn't show his pain or other "lesser" emotions.

            Nodding, Gohan focused his eyes on Vegeta, pulling his power in check and ceasing his struggling. The prince smiled smugly and suddenly dropped Gohan to the dirt ground, where the boy caught himself just barely, stumbling backward a few feet and then glaring silently, seething.

            "Good, you aren't so stupid after all!"

            Dusting off his white-gloved hands as if they had been contaminated, Vegeta continued to wear his smug smile as he stared down at the boy before him.

            "Now then, Gohan," he began, stepping forward slowly; this time Gohan did not flinch or move at all, but rather continued to glare at the taller man. "You may see me as a horrible man for having led my ally Nappa to kill your friends. You may find my mannerisms strange and cruel. But I am not from this dust ball. I come from a real world, where there is more than petty attachments and thoughts." 

            Vegeta smiled more genuinely as his voice grew to a more grandiose state, his eyes lighting up, strangely to the boy who stood before him, listening aptly and watching for any suspicious movements.

            "There are far worse demons in this Galaxy than me. There exists an alien named Frieza, for example, who sent – ordered – Raditz to come here and destroy this planet's populace so that Frieza might sell it to the highest bidder."

            Vegeta took another small step forward, holding out his hand.

            "Frieza is far more wicked and cruel than I am, Gohan. He is likewise inefficient…"

            Vegeta paused; he knew what he wanted to inspire in the boy, yet he was unsure as to how much to say; already the prince was beginning to put more personality into his sudden speech than he would normally want, but this boy… at the very least he would serve a good distraction for Frieza's guard when he went to Namek to fetch the Dragon Balls. And if properly trained… 

            Well, to put things lightly, Gohan would be a perfect replacement for Nappa, Vegeta beamed.

            "Gohan, it is our duty as Saiyan brethren, the remaining people of our planet, Vegetasai, to become great and mighty – together." Vegeta said, welling with pride as he extended a palm-turned-upward hand.

            Gohan stared at the hand a moment, not sure what to think; mixed emotions fueled his boyish comprehension, whose intellect was great, but whose life experience and brain development was too insignificant to grasp everything that played in Vegeta's posture, words, voice, and very presence. Rather the boy read a mixture of confusing emotions, and only grew further suspicious.

            "You're still an evil man." Gohan found the courage – or stupidity – to mutter. "Your friend killed my friends… no one should be forgiven for that."

            Vegeta narrowed his eyes, thinking fast. A light went off in his head, bringing an inward smile.

            "You killed my friend… why should I forgive you for that?" Vegeta stated smoothly and coolly, maintaining a strict eye contact.

            Gohan blinked, and then looked down, taken aback. He had… he had killed someone. That fact hadn't clicked yet, he had been too caught up in the flow of things, in the movement of avenging Piccolo's death, in defeating what he considered to be evil. Yet… what was Gohan now? 

            The boy's stomach churned; all of a sudden, he didn't know what to think of the man before him, let alone himself.

            Vegeta knew he had hit what he had aimed for, and took delight in the simplicity of it all. The boy was still a boy, powerful or not. And the son of Kakarot would be his.

            "Not so easy now, is it Gohan?" Vegeta stated smoothly, suddenly appearing above Gohan, looking down at the boy through concerned-appearing eyes, reaching down a hand to place on the boy's forehead.

            Gohan felt a jolt of energy at the physical contact, and tore backwards several feet; Vegeta made no move to follow him; nor had the prince done any damage. Goku's son's heart was beating as furiously as his mind was racing, with no destination in sight.

            "You have a great power, Gohan. Piccolo saw it in you, as do I. Your father never let you hone it, nor, I would suspect, has your mother. I know how to help you grow stronger, boy, how to become a true Saiyan warrior." 

            Gohan made a small whimpering sound in the back of his throat; suddenly the boy wanted nothing more than to be back home with his mother and father. Vegeta…

            There was a flash of light in Gohan's mind, spinning him out of dark revelry and toward a tall rock cropping nearby. Nearby, Krillin nearly jumped for joy, his eyes trembling with happiness. Vegeta caught the boy's change in posture, felt a change in the atmosphere, and then finally felt something in his being **click**; his scouter was last to resound, bleeping an arrow with a subtext of "5,000."

            Goku, father of Gohan, stood silently atop a tall stone spire, looking down at his son, the partly hidden childhood friend Krillin, and the dark, remaining Saiyan, Vegeta.

            He had taken far too long, and knew not what had transpired in his absence aside from something terrible, as he could tell by the terrified feeling that radiated from his 6 year-old son's body.

            "…Daddy?" Gohan choked, feeling his confusion, hurt and anger repressed by a rush of incredulity and love.

            There was a flash, Vegeta's scouter pinged "8,000," and Goku stood next to Krillin where he "hid." 

            "Here, have this." Goku smiled in his traditionally part-goofy sense, holding out a Senzu and breaking it in half. "It's a Senzu bean, it'll restore your strength."

            "Wow, a Senzu bean?" Krillin grinned, beaming as he took it in his mouth and began to chew, feeling his energy already beginning to refill and refocus, as his pain subsided.

            There was yet another flash, and Goku stood beside Gohan, a strong, fatherly hand placed firmly on his son's shoulder as his demeanor changed to a darker tone, his eyes catching Vegeta's. The prince stood silently, watching and analyzing.

            There was a physical shift in the atmosphere of the South Desert at that moment, a swirl of surface dust twirling about lazily under the midday sun, the two remaining adult Saiyans staring at one another quietly.

            It was Vegeta who broke that eerie silence, as Gohan stared up joyously at his father, lost in his inviting yet focused and suddenly serious presence.

            "So, the great Kakarot. We meet at last. I've heard so much about you." Vegeta sneered, folding his arms as was habit and letting the flowery cool glow return to his eyes. 

            "I wish I could say the same." Goku stated simply.

            "True; I suppose your friends could do me justice… were they here today." Vegeta narrowed his eyes, his grin increasing by the same volume. 

            Goku's demeanor only grew cooler, more serious. Gohan had never known his father like this, and lost his boyish entrancement, which was replaced by his previous awakening to reality and harsher emotions.

            "Krillin." Goku stated, never leaving his intent eyes leave Vegeta's face.

            Krillin sprang forward to his friend's side, sliding into fighter's stance warily.

            "Yea Goku?"

            "Take Gohan back to Master Roshi's house. Now."

            Krillin was taken aback; he had expected to fight side-by-side with his longtime friend and ally, not run away. Besides, hadn't Gohan just proven himself? Then again, the man prodded himself; Goku hadn't been here to see that.

            "Are you sure Goku?" Krillin stammered, narrowing his eyes. The champion of Earth kept his eyes on Vegeta's, the two never wavering their foci.

            "Please, Krillin, for me; take Gohan back where it's safe."

            "Safe from who? Me?" Vegeta suddenly laughed, throwing back his head and detracting from the tension until he brought his gaze back at the father-son-friend trio.

            Vegeta sneered smugly at the Earthlings, his scouter confirming what he had assumed; under normal circumstances, Goku's incredible increase of power since his battle with Raditz would have surprised him. 8,000 power levels was no child's play, however weak when compared with Vegeta's own. Yet Kakarot's son… 

            Vegeta played his next card with venom in his breath.

"Or haven't you realized your son is stronger than you, Kakarot?" 


	3. Decision

            A glint of sunlight sprawled shadows over the South Desert, tall, rocky spires standing a silent guard over a scene where moments before a young Saiyan boy had been thrown into the thralls of adulthood. But the boy's father was there now, certainly to make things better, the child thought, though his gut feeling seemed to betray him.

            Goku blinked slowly, his eyes painstakingly fixed upon the Saiyan before him as to never allow any sudden movements or attacks. His friends Tien, Yamcha, Chaotzu and Piccolo were gone from the Earth and sent to the other world; Krillin had definitely seen better days, shy from his death long ago, and Gohan…

            Goku strained internally to get a feel for the son he had not known for a year, whom Piccolo had taken under wing to train and advise in the matters of life. His boy had changed so much from the crying, wailing infantile 4 year-old he had left after his demise. Strong and trained, yet bewildered and inexperienced, Gohan felt dark to his father, regardless of the happy looks he knew were being cast at him.

            And Vegeta's words were still ringing in the thin desert air…

            Still smirking venomously, Vegeta stared at the pathetic trio before him; had his words hit a nerve in Kakarot's body? The prince chuckled under his breath.

            Krillin's lips parted in the parched air.

            "Uh… Goku?" Krillin's unspoken question was quite clear, the man's posture wavering slightly. Could Gohan really be stronger than his father, whom had spent the last year training with the gods?

            Goku kept his eyes on Vegeta, his expression unreadable to even the experienced warrior foe he faced.

            "Daddy?" Gohan frowned, narrowing his eyes and stealing a glance at Vegeta – who the boy found suddenly staring at him, causing a sudden rush of memories of hatred and anger to flood within the boy. Shifting from naïve and wistful, Gohan's presence grew even darker to his father.

            "Krillin, Gohan, please go back to Roshi's house." Goku finally stated, a dry whirl of wind ruffling his black hair, which was as poised and tense as he. Goku may have had a child's mentality in some things, but the worldly experiences department was well stocked in his spirit; if Gohan and Krillin would return to Roshi's, Bulma would surely know what to do. Already Goku's mind was racing forward to after the uncertain battle with Vegeta – how would he gain his friends back from the other world in Kami and Piccolo's absence? Bulma would know… 

            And regardless of whether what Vegeta had said was true or not, Gohan would only be a burden to his father.

            "Come now, be a good sport Kakarot. Let the boy have some fun." Vegeta spat, wearing his inexplicable smile of delight. "Or would you rather not allow your son to reach his potential and prove his worth?"

            Gohan's heart sank at the latter phrase Vegeta spoke, confusion splaying across his face. Piccolo would have surely let him stay and help, if not at least watch; why wouldn't his father? The boy reached out and felt his father's presence – strong, sure, and focused it was; but when Gohan prodded further, he found it to be… lesser than his own, at least in sheer strength.

            The boy worked up his courage for not the first time that afternoon.

            "Dad…" he began, his voice pitch sounding more assured, less childish, or at least he hoped. "Let me stay, I can help."  
            Goku felt his heart tear between the two truths, causing him to look down at Gohan's face, his mind hoping Vegeta would not be as dirty as he may be and take a sneak attack in his loss of focus; the prince did not move.

            Gohan did feel far stronger than Goku would have ever imagined, especially for his age; indeed the boy felt as strong, if not stronger, than his father, at that very moment. With the three of them – Krillin, Gohan, and himself – Goku felt certain that Vegeta could be given a good fight…

            Yet Gohan had no experience in battle, would not know what to do in so many instances; sheer power was not all that mattered. 

            And what if Gohan were to die? Goku would never be able to forgive himself.

            "Please?" Gohan muttered, turning to stare with a determined face at Vegeta.

            Krillin knew the look that had suddenly washed over Goku's face, pulling it back up with a confident smile back toward Vegeta. The bald, short man sighed and slid into the best battle stance he could manage.

            "Alright then." Goku smiled, sliding into a real battle stance as he lowered his center of gravity and felt his power. Stealing a quick look at his son, whose face beamed with a mixture of delight and willpower, Goku grinned even wider. "Just don't let me down, son." The man added, patting the boy's head.

            Gohan grinned his father's grin and flushed, as Krillin rolled his eyes before focusing with a set jaw at the Saiyan before the trio.

            Vegeta unfolded his arms and curtly laughed.

            "Very well then, it looks as if I might get more than a warm-up after all!"

            'And when the opportunity comes, I can show that Saiyan brat where he belongs…'

~*~*~

            Kami paused in his walk toward King Yemma's office, the quartet of Earth's defenders – save Piccolo, who felt his other half's sudden change in demeanor and stopped – nearly walking into his unexpected halt.

            "What is it, Kami?" Yamcha asked, his face furrowed beneath the shaggy mane of hair that encompassed his figure; the old god wore a rather out-of-place frown and glazed eyes that the human had never seen him sport before.

            Behind him, Yamcha felt similar feelings of mixed dread and apprehension at the god's pause before the great King Yemma's residence in the other world. Piccolo stood, arms folded, and prodded Kami's mind.

            'You feel it too, eh old man? Gohan's power is more than even I expected…' Piccolo pressed.

            Kami nodded, just noticeably, causing Tien, Chaotzu and Yamcha to only grow more curious.

            Turning to face the warriors he needed to lead to the Judge's office, Kami let loose a heavy sigh; he had to tell them what was going on, they deserved that much at least.

            "Goku has arrived to join the fight." He stated, watching the trio's faces wash warm with delight; Piccolo continued his unreadable stare, as if daring the god to continue what he knew to be likewise true; Kami complied with another sigh.

            "And Nappa is dead." He added cautiously; Tien's face expressed sheer happiness at the news of his killer's demise.

            "I knew Goku could do it!" Yamcha laughed above the delighted cheers from Chaotzu, only to be interrupted by Piccolo's harsh snap.

            "Tell them the rest, Kami."

            The trio of humans fell silent and looked from Piccolo to Kami, its mood lessening and gaining discomfort; Kami avoided eye contact with any of the fallen heroes.

            "It was not Goku who killed Nappa, but rather Gohan, and he, his father and Krillin now stand waiting in the way of Vegeta." He continued heavily; the men before him slowly looked to one another for explanations of Gohan's power, while Piccolo put on a slightly smug face. "But I fear the battle they face is more than the price of Gohan's loss."

            This latter statement caused only more confusion in the ranks of the deceased, save Piccolo, who mentally checked Kami with an internal 'humph.'

            "Enough of that, though." Kami stated irritably, turning around and reinstating the march to Yemma's palace with a quickened pace, everyone behind him suddenly lurching forward. "I must get you to see King Kai so that you may train under him as did Goku. I fear this is but the beginning of the tide of darkness the Earth shall face."

            Piccolo hung at the back of the somber group as they paced forward, his senses extended, strained, to the living realm and the battlefield where he had just died. His normally dark face flashed a flicker of a smile.

            'Get him kid; for me.'

~*~*~

            Gohan stood silently beside his father and father's friend, Krillin, feeling his chi as Piccolo had taught him. The thought of the Namekian only gave the young boy further energy and focus to his physical being. Goku's body began to brim with his as-of-yet untold power, the air about him simmering from a force other than the hot desert sun. Krillin felt his regained strength, thanks to the half of a Senzu Goku had given him, though he knew it paled by mountains compared to the two to his left.

            The man ground his teeth and sighed.

            'Well, I suppose I'll at least be able to train under the gods when I die…' he thought gloomily; his thoughts were suddenly interrupted. 

            Vegeta's sappy smirk flashed into a look of delightful determination as his entire being flickered, the dirt beneath him exploding into a small crater. Krillin had no time to sense the combatant's chi, let alone see him, before he was sent flying several meters with a painful **snap**; the man had only a millisecond's reflex to spin his propelled body upright and land his feet with a shattering crunch against the boulder Vegeta had aimed him at.

            "Sheesh!" Krillin yelped, his footing slipping as he crouched at the base of the cracked boulder and mothered his shoulder, a massive bruise already forming there.

            Gohan and Goku split apart, the after-force of Vegeta and their departure making the ground shift and slice in on itself where they had been.

            The prince gleefully kicked off of the ground and spun about, throwing his body at Kakarot, willing to test the Earthling Saiyan's strength; Goku barely saw the oncoming attack, glanced at his already-fallen friend, cursed inwardly, and summoned forth more energy than Vegeta's scouter had previously seen – all in the same instant.

            "Kaioken!" Goku screamed, his body becoming enflamed by red light as he shot with clenched fists at Vegeta. The Saiyan foe caught the incoming punch with a left-handed parry, slapped Goku with his right fist and then kneed him in the stomach, causing the hero to flinch and lose focus of his energy.

            'Ai, he's strong!' Goku barely had time to scold himself and register his thoughts when Gohan inexplicably crashed into the semi-distracted Vegeta's back, slashing doubled fists into the small of his neck.

            Vegeta gawked and flew forward in the air several feet as Gohan crashed onto his feet on the ground, wincing at the force he had jolted into his hands. The bad man had barely been moved by that attack, whose power would have up heaved Nappa previously.

            "Nice try, boy!" Vegeta laughed as he spun about to thrust out a hand to deliver a ki blast – though the corner of his eye gave him too late a warning as Kakarot's red-glowing body flashed into his side and crashed him to the ground with an explosion.

            Goku groaned and flipped off of Vegeta, setting himself on the floor meters from the newly formed crater where Vegeta now lay. Gohan flung himself towards his father and landed beside him, spreading his feet and crouching into an awaiting battle stance.

            "I'm impressed, Kakarot; you managed to knock the wind out of me." Vegeta chuckled, standing up in the crevice made for him and staring at the father-son duo. A gloved hand went to wipe a smudge of dirt from his cheek and then clapped against the other hand, seemingly in a bored fashion. "I suppose I shall have to use my full power now."

            Gohan blanched for a moment, but stretched out his senses to prod Vegeta's figure; was the Saiyan telling the truth? Beside his son, Goku stared at Vegeta and took deep breaths, already winded from that exertion of Kaioken times two. King Kai had told him his foe would be strong; he had felt a terrible strength from Vegeta already; yet Goku's attack had been twice that of his normal strength, and had barely done enough damage to knock the Saiyan into the ground and away from his son.

            'I shouldn't have left Gohan stay…' Goku kicked himself, though it was too late; Vegeta flashed with white energy, his hair bristling as did his energy.

            Vegeta had no clue how it was that Kakarot managed to double his power like that, though he knew his scouter and the slight damage he had sustained did not deceive him. Perhaps Gohan's sudden strength could now be warranted; Vegeta had to be more careful, so that he might defeat these low-level Saiyans without too much strife and then depart to Namek and wish for eternal life. Kakarot was beginning to appear as dangerously surprising as his son, and Vegeta needed to put him in his place.

            Gohan growled and focused the anger he knew to yet reside within him, his body flaring with strength, as Piccolo would have shown him; Vegeta was cause of more pain than just the demise of the boy's mentor; the bad man gave Gohan a sense of dread and confusion, a lack of self-definition… "You killed my friend… why should I forgive you for that?" – Vegeta's mocking words were already haunting the boy…

Unknowing of his son's internal chaos, Goku prepared his Kaioken attack again, feeling only partly guilty for what he may need to do against King Kai's orders; Vegeta was strong, and worse-yet, had already targeted his son and brought the child enough heartache. The boy's father would do whatever it took to keep Gohan from facing death – the boy's own or anyone else's –anymore…

            "Time to bow to your prince, Kakarot." Vegeta laughed, kicking aside his brooding thoughts and flashing forward at full might; the desert turned into a blur of dust, Gohan's face frozen in its combination of fear and determination – and Goku's face mirroring the grim look of a true warrior that Vegeta now wore as the hero prepared his Kaioken x3 attack.


	4. Duel

            A flash of red light erupted amidst a scream of "Kaioken… times three!" beside Gohan, causing the boy to throw up his energized arms before his face, his feet scuttling backward several feet before planting themselves – and thus the shocked boy – in place. The ground shattered beneath Goku's black-booted feet, pressing downward to create a small crater at the midst of which Goku stood.

            Vegeta's glowing white self-projectile hurtled toward the father-son pair; the prince's scouter bleeped a static "24,000" before the aggressor grabbed the device and let it fall to the ground that raced beneath him. He would not rely so easily on mere numbers – that had been Nappa's downfall.

            Gohan leapt backwards and to his right as Vegeta's fist collided with his father's prepared fist, followed by a fierce right elbow that should have taken off Goku's head – had the boy's father not thrown up his other arm to catch the attack at his elbow, grunting with effort, his body aflame in red. 

            Vegeta snarled and, planting both of his white-covered boots into Kakarot's low-level, straining face, blasted into the air, spinning himself about and gathering his ki into an enclosed right fist. Many meters to the south, Krillin stood open-eyed and shocked, barely catching the fight that was occurring so quickly before him.

            "Nifty trick there, Kakarot, but can you handle this?" Vegeta laughed, launching his arm out and bracing it with his left hand, an orb of bluish-white ki blasting down at the man below. 

            Goku clenched his teeth and forced himself to maintain the Kaioken technique – it was wearing on him quickly, his body felt ready to explode from the onslaught of power he was drawing out – so that he might reach up and deflect the shot with his arm, accompanied by a vicious "Ha!" He couldn't keep up the Kaioken this long; he knew he should have saved it!

            Floating in the air, Vegeta gawked for a moment as he watched Kakarot throw his full-power ki assault into the sky, where it arced and came crashing into the ground a quarter-mile away. A flickering white explosion ensued, throwing a cloud of dust, debris, and black smoke into the air; Vegeta scowled distastefully.

            Beneath Gohan's feet, the boy felt the tremors of the earth at the shaking of the explosion; his body was frozen still, face knotted in a desperate yet shocked posture. His father had suddenly gained so much power, as had Vegeta, leaving the boy to the dirt where he stood, a helpless feeling grabbing hold of him.

            The bright flash of the distant explosion from Vegeta's deflected blast triggered a flash of equally bright memory – Piccolo leaping in the way of Nappa's energy attack, a flash of an explosion before and all around Gohan as he screamed in isolated fear – Piccolo laying dead on the ground before vanishing – Gohan allowing his anger to consume him, to defeat Nappa –

            Gohan's ki flared, his body floating into the air as it gained a blanket of white power; the boy had very little experience flying, honing his ki to carry his body, yet suddenly it came so naturally – as did the now familiar anger and vengeance – to him, his face solidifying with determination. He could feel his father already beginning to falter…

            Goku called off his Kaioken technique as he landed on a tall spire of stone, propelling himself to another pillar to dodge a quick flash of ki that Vegeta had hurtled toward him; the attack took off the cap of the stone Goku had just been standing on, causing the prince to curse under his breath, which was already growing staggered.

            "Damnit, how could he be so strong already?" Vegeta snarled quietly, gathering himself and flying forward; Goku had suddenly lost the queer reddish glow of power, and Vegeta, now grinning again, sensed an opportunity to attack him where he stood, upon another tall spire of rock, his body planting itself where it stood. It was no matter – whatever Kakarot did to increase his ki likewise drained him incredibly; already the low-level was wearing the signs of fatigue, his base power level feeling lesser than previous to this spar.

            Vegeta grinned as he flashed forward, appearing before Kakarot and slapping out a fist – only rather than catch Kakarot in the face as he had intended, he found his hand enveloped by two smaller hands connected to the Saiyan brat, Gohan, whose face strained with effort, his muscles bulging with said force.

            Goku took the spare second to scream another "Kaioken!" and flash behind the prince, who slapped out his other hand square into Gohan's face, knocking him backward into the air; Vegeta found himself following Gohan in the wake of his departure, a surge of pain in his lower back as the result of the dirty Saiyan Kakarot's knee connecting with the base of his tail.

            Goku grunted and landed on the tall stone pillar a half-second, long enough to propel himself into the sky after Vegeta, who was already spinning about and regaining control of his fall. Gohan flared bright white in the distance, likewise catching himself and throwing his body at the Saiyan prince – the Saiyan prince who was now becoming quite angry.

            The damned low-level Kakarot had been in his sight, powered down, and then that brat – Vegeta forced a handle onto his developing temper, flaring his ki and blasting into the sky above the pair that raced toward him. Very well then, he would swap tactics to psychology; these Earthlings showed a remarkable sense of loyalty that Vegeta doubted would betray them.

            The prince laughed as he stopped above, gathering his energy and focusing it down his right arm, planting his left hand unto his right wrist for support; below him, Kakarot and his son stopped and look up at him.

            Were Kakarot or his son any normal sentient, they would run from an attack that threatened the entire planet. Were they true Saiyans, their personal honor would hold them to the spot to die fighting. However, were they the sentimental beings he found them to be…

            "Well, Kakarot!" Vegeta began, projecting his voice tactfully downward at the desert that gleamed below, two figures floating roughly fifty meters from his pose; the prince continued to gather his ki, an orb of energy growing betwixt his fingertips. "I'll give you a chance to join me and your Saiyan heritage; power down and promise your surrender," Vegeta snorted; Kakarot did not seem the type to give up; "Or watch this planet be blown to space debris!"

            Goku snarled and turned to grab his son by the wrist; Gohan yelped as he felt himself pulled to the solid dusty ground below, his father's face suddenly turned to his.

            "Gohan, take Krillin and get away from here right now!" Goku stated, his expression suddenly very calm; his desperate face flickered into the smile Gohan had grown up to know so very well, though only for an instant. "I'm proud of you son, but I need you to save Krillin and go."

            Gohan's heart panged; his mind, even his heart, told him to obey his father, to grab Krillin where he hid helplessly nearby and leave; but another part of him, deep inside the core of anger and powerful vengeful nature he had summoned in part previously, struggled against him, willing to stay until Vegeta had been beaten.

            This sudden attack within the boy snapped him to another level of consciousness; he wanted so much to see Vegeta sniveling at his feet, begging for his life, only to have it taken away at Gohan's hands – Gohan shut his eyes to the horrible vision he had just concocted, opened them to find his caring father in its place. Suddenly the boy wanted very much to listen to his father, to shun the dark thoughts that had been coming to him that day, ever since Piccolo had died; since Vegeta had spoken to him…

            Swallowing, Gohan nodded once and then flared his energy with clenched fists, flying like a blast of ki to where he vaguely sensed Krillin to be. Behind him, Gohan felt his father's ki begin to grow again.

            "Sending the boy away again? Afraid to let him watch his father die again?" Vegeta laughed, the energy in his arm reaching a climax; he could force out no more.

            Goku set his face and brought his hands almost habitually to his right side, focusing his power.

            "Whatever you do, Vegeta, I will not let you destroy the Earth!" Goku yelled up to the glowing figure above him.

            "Very well; so be it!

            "Gallic Gun!" the Saiyan prince screamed, thrusting his arm forward and allowing a massive beam of white-blue light fly from his hand, forcing itself out with every ounce of ki Vegeta could spare; the prince prepared to watch Kakarot blown once again into the next dimension.

            Goku's eyes became slits, his mind suddenly clearing as he felt his ki, pressed it faithfully into his cupped palms.

            "Ka…me…ha…me…"

~*~*~

            Korrin stared wisely from his spot atop the neck of the Lookout, his whiskers twitching nervously; beside him, the oaf Yajirobe ignorantly swallowed another bite of his sub sandwich.

            "Yajirobe, why did you train with the Z-Senshi?" Korrin turned his head only slightly, breaking his focus from the engaging battle far away. 

            "I dunno; I suppose I did so I could help out somehow, but those guys are way too strong for me." The man paused, staring at the white cat's back.

            Korrin's fur bristled; he had to do something, though already Goku had the only Senzu beans that were ripe and ready; the next batch wouldn't be harvested for at least a month. And as the cat was no fighter, but Yajirobe had in his possession a rather sharp and useful sword…

            "However weak you are, why don't you get your lazy butt up and into our car so you may join the battle?" Korrin stated through pursed lips, his body spinning about.

            Yajirobe blanched, turning white.

            "No way man! Uh-uh!"

            Korrin flicked out his claws and narrowed his already squinted eyes.

            "Go-help-them-now." The cat-god snarled, his hair standing out and giving him a larger look; Yajirobe dropped his sandwich and sweat-dropped, blinking with a very frightened expression – though whether frightened at the cat or at the prospect of joining the foray that exploded far away, Korrin did not know. 

            "F-fine then!" Yajirobe muttered, spinning about and throwing out the capsule that contained his car. "If I end up dead, I'm going to haunt you!" the fat man added as he leapt into the driver's seat; with that said, Yajirobe's vehicle blasted off into the eerily clear blue sky.

            "I wouldn't be so worried about your death as I would be worried about the fate of the planet…" Korrin muttered, turning to cast his vigilant gaze once again outward.

~*~*~

            Vegeta's ki attack glowed awesomely, halfway between the two warriors already; Gohan felt the heat and power from it as he landed beside Krillin, the short bald man glancing at him and then nodding silently as he kicked off of the ground and into the air.

            Goku felt his son's presence growing further away, and with a grunt of satisfaction allowed himself to wear his game-face, turning off his outward sensing abilities to keep his focus where it was needed.

            'This one is for whatever you did to my son…' Goku waged grimly, engaging the Kaioken and then its consecutive second level. Vegeta would not cause his son his innocence, nor destroy the inhabitants on Earth. 

            "HA!"


	5. Onslaught

            Gohan was nearly pushing Krillin through the air, Goku's small friend having less power – and therefore speed – than the younger hero of the Z-Senshi. The desert ground spun a blur below the pair as it swung through the tall rock pillars and small mountains, the sun at its 4 o'clock position in the sky directly before them.

            The boy's eyes were squinted against more than the glaring sunlight as he flew onward from the battle that was now more than a mile behind and nearing two; behind his scrunched, impassionate face hid a myriad of sudden emotions that had grown from the last words to catch his ears as he left the scene.

            _"Sending the boy away again? Afraid to let him watch his father die again?"_

            Gohan swallowed in the blurring air that whipped about him, his mind playing dark images of his father, whose strength was indeed greater than the boy's – though only when he glowed red, and only for short amounts of time, the boy knew; a memory of Piccolo – now dead – killing the Saiyan Raditz and Gohan's father, who had clung to his brother's frame to hold him from escape, flickered in the boy's fleeing head; it was proceeded by an imaged of Son Goku enveloped in blue ki, before incineration encumbered him…

            "Hey, Gohan! Are you alright?" Krillin yelled, swooping in closer to the 5 year-old, who snapped out of his mental recession and looked at the man beside him.

            "Huh? Yeah…" Gohan muttered, facing forward again and stretching out his senses; he suddenly remembered he had no clue how to get to Master Roshi's – he had only been there once, a year prior. Stopping abruptly, his stomach lurching momentarily, Gohan blinked and looked forward to Krillin, who had just halted several meters ahead of the boy after noticing Gohan's stop. "Well, actually… what way is Master Roshi's?" 

            Krillin raised his eyebrows.

            "Oh, heh, might help if you knew where we were going, wouldn't it?" the man in the Roshi gi laughed, rubbing his head. "Why don't I lead –"

            Gohan let loose a sharp yelp that cut Krillin out of his tangent and spun the pair about toward the now distant battle; the boy had felt a surge of power that chilled him to the bone. Just over the horizon, beyond the vast wasteland of dust and stone, flickered a purplish glow that began to gradually grow in intensity.

            Krillin swallowed, and grabbed Gohan, forcefully turning the kid to face him.

            "Come on Gohan, we have to get back to Roshi's to let the others –" 

            "No!" Gohan snarled, shaking free from the man's grasp; Krillin flew back a couple of feet in sudden shock, though he blinked it off and wore a more concerned, inquisitive face. Gohan's eyes had flashed with the dark anger that Krillin had felt when Nappa was obliterated. In the boy's now softening gaze the man had seen the determined look of Son Goku, underlain by something more menacing…

            Gohan realized he had scared his father's friend, who only meant him good; looking down, he bit his lip a moment and then caught Krillin's small black eyes.

            "Sorry, but I can't leave my father, he needs me."

            Krillin looked about to object, but the ground suddenly spasmed and the light on the horizon grew brighter; Gohan's stare was not to be messed with. The man sighed and curled his face worriedly.

            "Alright then, kid, go give him hell for me; I'll get Bulma and the others."

            Gohan and Krillin nodded at one another, and the pair flared with white energy, departing in separate directions.

            "Hang on, daddy!"

~*~*~

            Goku's feet dug a hole into the shattering, lowering ground beneath him, the man's legs running a direct line to his outstretched arms, the Kamehameha wave streaming from his open palms – from his very being – into the air where it fought fiercely for space against the gathered might of Vegeta's oncoming Gallic Gun. Purple light filled the sky as nearby pillars toppled where they stood, sonic waves coming from the huge orb where red met blue and grew.

            Already Goku could feel the wear upon his body the Kaioken double strength was causing, his every muscle straining to no avail – Vegeta's laughter accompanied the power of his attack, growing in volume and strength.

            "Well, Kakarot, it appears your reign over this planet was short lived," Vegeta glared beyond the orb of collected power that began to inch closer toward the earth and its target, "As short lived as you."

            Vegeta had certainly enjoyed this chance to test his power, to even feel the grasp of desperation if only for a moment, but the time had come to finish the job. Kakarot's body would absorb most of the damage from Vegeta's attack, which would leave a repairable scar on the planet's surface. And after recovering from this battle, Vegeta could only get stronger.

            'And when I'm done,' he groaned, forcing more energy down at Kakarot to finish the job, 'I'll pick up that Saiyan brat and take him as my own little souvenir.'

            Another wave of energy crashed outward from the pool of wrath the two warriors were sending at each other, rippling outward and jarring the landscape even further; entire boulders began to lift into the air at the distortion of gravity this exposition of ki was causing, each of the stones shattering into smaller and smaller pieces until it appeared they were gone, reduced to particles.

            At the bottom of the attack stood Son Goku, his body aching in every way, his might giving way.

            "Must… find more… strength…" he snarled, his gi shredding from the stress and heat the atmosphere carried now in it; the man recalled King Kai's warning only a day earlier; _"Remember, Goku, the Kaioken x2 attack is only to be used during the most extreme of circumstances, and any level beyond that, while very dangerous to its user's health, to be used when there is no other option."_

            'Can't seem to find any other option…' Goku grinned sardonically to himself, though the smile was wiped from his face and replaced by a knot of pain and clenched teeth as Vegeta's attack continued its descent – only 5 meters lay between Goku and the prince's attack above him.

            "Kaioken!" Goku began, focusing what little strength he had in reserve, his veins feeling as if they were as aflame as his body.

            "Times 3!"

            The red fire that encircled Kakarot's body exploded with more strength, as did the low-level's attack, which pushed upward and sent an unexpected jolt through the celebrating Vegeta's arm; the prince snarled and braced himself, flying upward a foot before catching himself. 

            'Curse him!' Vegeta spat, thrusting his arm – and ki – down at the ever-growing orb of gathered forces. How could Kakarot gather strength like that? He was surely beaten, ridden of all resident strength, yet here he stood, sending more power Vegeta's way – more power that the prince began to fear he would not be able to fight against; the prince's muscles began to ache, his ki surely draining.

            "Try what you may, you will perish like the rightful low-class warrior you are!" Vegeta spat hopefully at the Earthling below, watching through trembling eyes and body as the crater his foe was the epicenter of grew more under the strain the pair was causing.

            Goku felt a hollow spot in his heart where Vegeta's words stung him; his body couldn't take much more of this! Pain writhed through his body like a snake, eating at whatever force was holding him there. Goku's eyes faltered, the red-hot glow above him becoming fuzzy. Sweat evaporated from where it dripped on his body.

            "Can't… hold up… much longer!" the father of Gohan gasped, feeling his right knee collapse from strain – his left shot stiff, taking a brunt of needle-pained jarring force as Goku struggled in vain to plant his other foot back down, the man no longer able to push any ki up. If only he hadn't used his Kaioken, and thus his reserved energy, so earlier on!

            'I'm… failing…' Goku winced, the last drop of ki drizzling upward from his arms, arms that then draped down to his sides. The man cast his face up as the collection of both his and Vegeta's might and ki paused and then began to race toward him.

            "I'm sorry Gohan…"

~*~*~

            Krillin whimpered and spun about, his body tensing up as he felt Goku's ki shrink to something miniscule, overweighed by a massive glow of power that Krillin could see as a glint of light far away from where he floated above the receding desert landscape.

            "No! Goku!" he gasped, a look of terror on his face, his mind growing eerily blank as he awaited his doom, awaited the crash from that terrible attack.

~*~*~

            Vegeta was more than laughing now – he was cackling, cackling a demonic, boastful howl that managed to overpower the horrible hum that emanated from the attack that drifted down at Kakarot's drained form. He had won, Kakarot would be gone in a matter of moments, and the explosion from this attack would leave a mark to prove what would occur when anyone messed with the prince of Saiyans.

            Vegeta had only to give one final shove to the attack below him, one final graft of his arm, one final blow that he would savor in his thoughts for sometime to come…

            Pain rocked his face, accompanied by a "Ha!" and the afterimage of a fleeing brown foot, knocking the Saiyan from his revelry and causing him to lose grip on his control of the attack below him – though the attack continued to drift downward, slowly gaining momentum to break free of its own ki gravity.

            "The fu –" Vegeta began, twisting away in a mixture of shock and rage, only to find himself the victim of a sudden onslaught of punches, kicks and knees, each one sending tremors of pain through his body.

            The brat! Vegeta gathered his weakened self, threw out a hand to catch Gohan's incoming flying fist, but only managed to deflect the damage as a knee was thrown at his groin; Vegeta brought up his own leg and twisted back, bunting aside the raging 5 year-old's attacks. Where the bloody hell had he come from? Vegeta cast a quick eye at the attack below him as it flamed, bloated and round, closer to the trembling earth, though the prince quickly brought his focus back up and caught the eyes of the kid in his own gaze.

            Gohan stopped his attack and backed up several meters, his body trembling, his eyes glazed over with white anger.

            "Leave my daddy alone!" the boy snarled, his body glowing bright white, his ki flaring even more. Vegeta found himself experiencing a mixture of fascination and dread – the prince had put nearly all his strength into the attack meant to kill Kakarot, and now the boy's strength was surely higher than it had been before even.

            'No time for foolish mistakes.' Vegeta set himself, putting back on his usual smirk.

            "You're too late, boy; your father and this planet will be space dust soon, and your only chance to survive is to come with me." He croaked, pulling out a small rectangular device and clicking a button on it. Gohan heard it beep, but paid it no more heed; he was going to show Vegeta he was no weakling.

            "And go where? To kill some more people?" Gohan spat, his fists clenched tightly, muscles trembling; the source of his anger he did not know, though he let it flow freely now, enjoying the rush it gave him. "I don't think so!"

            Vegeta narrowed his eyes and glowered.

            "Then enjoy the same fate as your father."

~*~*~

            One moment Goku had been sure he was facing death again, the next – the next moment found the man opening wide eyes above as he sensed Vegeta's ki give way, disrupted by…

            "Gohan!" Goku gasped, his body aching from strain and causing his lungs to wheeze. Gohan had returned, albeit against his command, and saved him!

            Goku laughed joyfully for a half-second, though his laughter was cut off as he realized the attack bearing down on him was still coming at him, though without a captain; Goku could surely scuttle out of the way, but the resulting explosion would kill him, and his son, and everyone on the planet in the process.

            There was only one thing the Earthling could really do – finish the fight with the onslaught of Vegeta.

            "Here goes nothing…" Goku muttered, ruefully noting that nothing was what he had to give…

~*~*~

            Krillin closed his eyes, expecting the world to flash away from under his feet – but no flash came, only the continued dull glow in the distance as he felt another flare of ki under-shadowing it.

            "…Gohan?" Krillin blinked, shaking himself free of his shock. Had Gohan somehow stopped the attack? Krillin stretched out his senses; no, the attack still existed, still beamed terribly strong, and Goku's ki was very faint, but at the very least the boy had prolonged Earth's destruction.

            "I can't just fly away like this!" Krillin growled, flaring his ki and thinking – hard. Goku wouldn't leave, even if told to, and Krillin had to be of some help, somehow…

            A light bulb clicked in the man's shiny head, and he gloated with glee, blasting himself toward the battle at full speed.


	6. Armaggedon

            His eyes held an incredible passion, a passion that flamed outward in his ki; Gohan looked more than the whimpering 5 year-old Vegeta had been watching earlier that day, and that very fact fascinated the prince of Saiyans. Vegeta wore his best cocky smile and folded his arms before his chest, giving the kid more to be angry at. It worked – Gohan's clenched fists somehow grew tighter, his ki glowing brighter.

            Gohan had been lucky just a moment prior, and Vegeta would not let his guard down so easily again; weakened from his energy excursion with Kakarot or not, Vegeta was still stronger than the little brat; he could… sense it. And that alone was something else he would be thankful for upon leaving this dust ball the Earthlings protected so much.

            Nearly all his life Vegeta had been raised to rely on his scouter, to allow it to tell him the strength of his foe. But these Earthlings could alter their **readable** ki signature, focus it down, as well as sense the ki of others. 'More than likely an adaptation since they do not have any decent technology…' Vegeta snorted, watching Gohan as he flashed forward at the prince, unfurling his tail from where its tip was hitched at its base behind the Saiyan's back. However, it was a very useful adaptation – and one that Vegeta was keen to pick up on…

            "Ha!" Gohan yelled, throwing his fist forward and appearing before the prince – whose tail flashed up and about, jutting the boy across the face and spinning him from his attack. Vegeta spent no time waiting, but rather reared back his right fist and sent it into the boy's stomach, bringing Gohan's pain-and-shock-ridden face before Vegeta's; Gohan cried out, red spittle escaping in his gasp.

            Vegeta continued his retaliation against the inexperienced rodent; grabbing Gohan's left hand in his loved right hand and Gohan's right ankle in his left, Vegeta pulled the boy taught and pushed him out from him; Gohan began to squirm ferociously.

            "Let – Me – Go!" Gohan snarled; the boy was like an out of control beast, Vegeta chuckled.

            "Where do you plan on going? To kill someone else, like me?" Vegeta taunted, laughing as his tail ran up and grabbed the boy's right fist, wrapping about it as it zoomed at the prince's face; Vegeta's right knee came up to protect from any quick thoughts the boy gave to his left leg. Gohan was trapped at the prince's mercy, his ki flaring and searing against the warrior's own.

            Gohan stopped wiggling, breathing heavily as he stared with anger into Vegeta's cold, laughing eyes. The bad man had him, he couldn't move, regardless of how much strength he mustered. And once again Vegeta's psychology hit a chord in the boy's mind – he **had** intended to kill Vegeta…

            Vegeta watched something occur behind the boy's face, some emotion other than rage and hatred; despair, realization maybe? Laughing, Vegeta awaited his space pod, hearing it hum in the distance at a very high intensity he was used to picking out.

            'Good bye Kakarot.' Vegeta watched the low-class Earthling as the attack crushed him into the ground…

~*~*~

            "Ahh!" Goku screamed, his hands thrown back up with only the strength of resolve he had gathered upon seeing his son race to his rescue; the gathered energy orb of purple ki burned his hands, where Goku knew his blood to be boiling and instantly cauterizing, over and over.

            He had to do something, and fast, or the entire planet was doomed! Goku thought fast, raced to find something he could do, but to no avail; already the man's body was hidden from profile from the desert; the ki attack had painfully pressed him into the dirt, which cackled and exploded as near to the blast as it was.

            'There has to be something I can do!' Goku grunted, his hair singeing where it touched the orb above; the skylight was cut off from the massive purple glow that was all he could see now. Goku felt his body tingling, losing sensation; he knew this feeling – death; he was dying again, and the planet – and his son – would go with him.

            "No!" he cried out, his lungs burning; there was no oxygen down here to breath, the attack had eaten it up. 

            Goku could think of one last thing to try, though he may die trying.

            "Kaioken…" he began, choking back blood as he cried out, gathering ki he doubted he even had and focusing it into his torn and ruined body.

            "Times… 4!"

~*~*~

            Gohan felt a cold dread touch his heart. The boy strained his head backward, suddenly not caring about the man who held him so tightly; his father, he couldn't feel his father! All the boy could feel was the huge purple blob that had consumed his dad, had wiped his presence clean from the planet.

            "No! Daddy!" Gohan cried out. The boy's mind cut clean, he spun forward to face Vegeta, venom in his mouth; **he** had done this! Gohan suddenly did not care about anyone's life but his fathers, did not care whether or not he took another being's existence. His father was gone, and Vegeta would pay!

            Gohan flared, Vegeta gasped in shock, and the boy exploded free of Vegeta's very bonds, glowing so brightly that the prince was nearly blinded for an instant – and instant in which the boy slammed forward, crushing the prince's nose under his fist.

            Pain wretched Vegeta's face as he felt his nose break – how dare that brat! – and his body fly backward. He barely had time to realize what was going on when the terrible ki that Gohan had let loose smashed him backward through the sky yet again, this time victim to Gohan's roundhouse kick.

            "Damnit!" Vegeta spat, flipping about and stopping his descent; quickly he wiped the blood from his nose on his white glove, locking his face into the most contemptuous face he had worn in a very, very long time.

            That was it; the boy **was** going to suffer the same fate as his father now. Vegeta's rationale vanished, replaced by his strong tempered vengeance. Tempting body guard or not, Gohan would perish at the prince's hand…

            Vegeta focused his ki, powered up, and prepared to fly at the oncoming madman of a child who flew at him.

            Both of the warriors were snapped out of their assault by a terrible red flash to their south at the planet's surface, where the Kamehameha-Gallic Gun attack was sent spiraling into the sky.

            "What?" both Vegeta and Gohan mouthed…

~*~*~

            Goku had done it! The awesome assault flew from his second's-worth of strength, flew high into the sky, and the man fell to his knees, every ounce of strength he might have once possessed gone from his body. Eyelids heavy, Gohan's father allowed himself a small smile before he passed out, drifting into blissful darkness.

~*~*~

            Gohan watched as the huge purple bomb flew up into the faint-blue sky over the dreary desert; Vegeta laughed as it reached its peak, Kakarot's final attempt wearing out, and then slowly began to fall back to the earth.

            Wasting no time in his rival's downfall, Vegeta slowly hovered backwards, just as Gohan brought his tearful face back to his opponent. 

            Gohan had tasted the sweet bliss of victory for only a moment, but felt it die from his mouth, replaced by bitter fear, as the attack, carried by only a moment's worth of deflection, began to fall back to the planet. His heart was no longer black but cold, filled with dread; Vegeta would always be stronger than him, the planet would die, and all the child wanted very suddenly was to be by his father's side, going to the other world with him.

            "You… monster…" Gohan choked, tears streaming down his face.

            Vegeta laughed. This had been a most splendid time, he noted to himself. However, it was time to leave this dust ball to its Armageddon. His space pod rocketed overhead and then arced to the ground a quarter mile to Vegeta's right, where it slammed into the ground, forming not the first – nor the last, the prince smiled – crater of that day.

            "Well kid, it's been nice knowing you, but I have to fly." Vegeta laughed, turning around; he sensed no more threat from the boy; Gohan's fuel had drained from him along with the draining of Kakarot's strength. 

            Without a look back, Vegeta blasted off toward his space pod.

            Gohan stared at Vegeta's diminishing figure, unable to move, paralyzed to the spot. He had failed, his father had failed, everyone had failed. He **was** just a child… and he would watch his father die. Crying in full now, Gohan disobeyed the fleeting urge to chase Vegeta and turned around, gathering what fading strength he had to fly down to his father's side.


	7. Retaliation

            Krillin flew with speed he thought he hadn't in him, the ground nothing more than a blur beneath his figure. He fought down the sense of dread that filled his gut and flew, knowing nothing more than speed. He had to get there – he had to make a difference!

            Eyes no more than slits, the bald monk and friend of Goku flew forward; it was all he could do…

~*~*~

            Gohan landed softly in the black crater where his daddy lay, facedown and sprawled on the dirt. The boy wiped his eyes of their tears and sniveled, reaching out and prodding his father's ribs with a toe. He still felt something in his daddy – Goku wasn't dead… yet; the boy looked up at the growing orb of doom that flew down at him. Only a few seconds remained, the boy knew, and he wanted to spend it with his daddy.

            "Dad… please get up…" Gohan cried, falling down to cling at his father's neck. The boy clenched the tightly onto Goku's collarbone, burying his small face into his daddy's dusty back. "Please…"

            Goku felt sadness, his son… frowning, the man coughed and came out of the darkness, lifting his head and planting it on its side, offering a weak smile to his boy. Hadn't he…? No, Goku coughed, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth; he had only delayed his destruction, and now had nothing left to battle it. And Gohan, it appeared, no longer had any willpower as well.

            "Hey kiddo…" Goku smiled, trying to offer the boy some sort of solace. Gohan continued to cling tightly to his father's neck, sobbing. 

            "I failed, daddy, I failed! I let the bad man get away." Gohan cried, his voice muffled in Goku's gi. The boy's father frowned, trying to hold himself together, if only for his son's sake.

            'Well, here I come again, King Yemna…' he thought sarcastically, slowly forcing out his hand to catch Gohan's face, lifting it level with his own.

            "You didn't fail anyone Gohan…" Goku crooked a smile, his eyes as glittering with tears as his boy's. Gohan was too young to face the burden Goku had placed on him; too young to face death, his own or at his own hands.

            Goku rubbed away one of Gohan's stray tears and stared his son in the face, summoning strength to pull the boy into a hug.

            "If anything, you made me very proud…"

~*~*~

            A purple sun glowed overhead, an asteroid on collision course with the last defenders of Earth… the last defenders save one – Krillin. The man groaned with effort in his flight, his eyes catching Goku and Gohan in the epicenter of a wide and deep crater, his body twisting to carry him there.

            For just a moment, impending doom mattered not nearly as much as Krillin's saving presence. It was so simple, he cursed inwardly, the key to their victory – at least against this orb of vicious violet. Krillin's face furrowed with concentration, his body thudding as he brought himself to land beside the father-son pair, his heart thudding louder than his landing.

            "Goku! Get up!" Krillin gasped, grabbing the man from his son and throwing him onto his back.

            "Eh… Krillin?" Goku blinked, the bright purple light above too much for his weak, watery eyes. 'Where did you come from?' the Saiyan asked, though his lungs had no air to demand it aloud.

            "Goku, you baka! Where is it?"

            Krillin was patting Goku down furiously, checking his pockets, the folds in his gi. Gohan swallowed his tears and watched through confused eyes. What was Krillin looking for?

            "What? Where is what?" Goku muttered, clenching his eyes against the purple light whose source was now only ten meters above, eight meters above, casting a stinging heat upon the trio.

            "This!" Krillin yelped, pulling out a small green fragment. Krillin had always considered his best friend Goku to be a big goof, but never before had the short man thought that his friend would completely forget something as vital as this. With the orb above less than four meters and counting, Krillin shoved the half-Senzu into Goku's mouth, cutting off any dazed response and literally grabbing the Saiyan's jaw and working it for him.

            Krillin leapt back and spread his legs, looking up at the orb above him. "Hurry up Goku, I'll hold it off!" he yelled over the increasing hum of the oracle of death above. The man who shared Goku's original martial arts instructor gathered his palms at his side, hoping against hope that whatever he had done would save them all.

            Goku swallowed the Senzu bean as his son looked at him with fright and confusion; in an instant Goku felt his veins relight with life, his body reignite with fire. His ki surged, and with a determined look on his face, Goku flipped to his feet and slid into his friend's similar stance, nodding at Krillin in understanding.

            Gohan gasped, confused but realizing the urgency of the moment; shaking his head free of the sorrows shared but moments before, the boy crouched down and brought his hands to his forehead, gathering his ki in await.

            "Kamehame…" Goku and Krillin yelled, blue light flickering in the 3-foot expanse between their heads and the ki above…

"Masenko…"  
            This was it, Krillin snarled, throwing his hands out in unison with his two amigos, adding what little flame he had to the fire and willing this plot to provide a winning end…

"Ha!"

~*~*~

            Vegeta sat in his space pod, the hatch yet open to the arid desert air that lay out about him; the Saiyan was in no hurry, planet-destruction or not. Smiling to himself, the man tapped the mainframe controls of his transit vehicle, setting a temporary target of 1 parsec from the wretched planet he would be departing from. 

            "A pity, really; that brat might have proven a useful aide," he muttered, typing in the access code to Nappa's abandoned space pod and setting its automatic drive to join his in orbit of the planet.

            Vegeta looked out at the brilliant purple light that hid just beyond a range of collapsing stone pillars and increased the smile he wore on his face; it was always magnificent to watch, the destruction of a planet, the extinction of a species. And as he entered orbit, the prince could look forward to the chilling afterglow of the planet's underlying core-structure exploding, bringing that extinction about… and the foreboding feeling that accompanied the knowledge that he, Vegeta, had just killed an entire planet's sentience…

            Vegeta frowned; never before had he thought about it, but the prospect of the planet that had reared Kakarot exploding and taking its populace with it… for some odd reason, the Saiyan prince couldn't help but wonder what it would **feel** like. He had always felt a sense of dread, of wrong at previous genocides, but easily had admonished it. Yet now, with the skill he had learned from these beings to sense things more clearly through his ki…

            Vegeta shook off the sudden pensive and put back his winning smile, though it held a falter under it. 

            "Stop it Vegeta, you're growing soft." He snarled, punching the launch button for his pod. Any minute now it would be all over, and he wouldn't have to ponder it anymore.

            His pod closed tightly, its repulsors humming to life; the prince braced himself for the initial impact of the explosion that should be occurring – **should** be occurring right that moment. 

            Something was wrong; glancing out the small hole at the Earth sky, Vegeta felt a familiar eye-twitch overcome him. 

            "Damnit!" he snarled, overriding the launch sequence and feeling the pod drop back to the earth with a thud; resisting the urge to kick open his transportation's door, Vegeta felt his eye continue to twitch in irritation as he held himself back, though his ki began to flame under his skin. Those ingrate, low-level infidels!

            The pod had no more than hissed open when Vegeta found himself flying back toward the battle scene, the image of one thinning beam of blue light running perpendicular to the ground splitting into three smaller beams and then nothing very clear in his sight, his attack leaving the planet's orbit.

            "How?" he cursed, the crater ahead racing toward him, his thoughts racing within him. Images of the fight ran in him, his mind trying to find a flaw, any flaw to blame Kakarot's success – **the bean**!

            _"Here, have this."_ Vegeta suddenly recalled, his fists balled tightly, his teeth clenched to a breaking point. _"It's a Senzu bean, it'll restore your strength."_

            "Curse you, Kakarot! Have you no Saiyan pride?" Vegeta arced his flight to bring down as tough a landing as possible, a second part of his brain already skillfully running through what techniques or tactics he knew that would bring about an end to that damned low-level, whose power level was surely rising now after being so near to death. An image of both Kakarot and his son flickered in the prince's quick-witted mind, both barren of the mark of Saiyan ancestry…

            'Of course he has no Saiyan pride – he has the instinct of a Saiyan, or any other species, to survive.' Vegeta managed a grin at the thought despite himself. He had only one way to surely defeat these Earthlings, he bitterly resolved, preparing himself – and it would not be pretty…

~*~*~

            Goku had barely a millisecond to rejoice with his friends at this unexpected victory, the purple orb becoming nothing more than a star in the afternoon sky, when his gut panged, a **flash** in his mind's eye as all three of them spun about to regard an incoming projectile they knew now as Vegeta.

            "Aww, man!" Krillin groaned, rolling his eyes and flexing. "Does this guy ever give up?"

            Goku shook his head, though the motion was small – the father stood tall beside his son, who had been thrown into a whirlwind of emotions, thoughts and responsibilities that no other 5 year-old had experienced before. Goku had no time to regret this though, nor to marvel as his fully restored power level; a half of a Senzu bean should have only restored half of his strength, yet instead Goku felt himself at what he had just considered his full; until the man probed his potential even further, and found it vastly improved, granting him an inner shock.

            Vegeta slammed into the earth at the edge of the expansive crater he had created earlier with his ill-fated attack. The Saiyan prince did **not** look pleased.

            "Well, Kakarot, it seems you have managed to prove yourself more of a hassle than I would have expected." The man in Saiyan armor spat, not even bothering to fold his arms or smile cockily; rather, the prince went into an immediate battle stance. "It seems that I actually underestimated you and your gaggle of friends."

            Vegeta brought up his right hand, which began to glow.

            "But no more!" he laughed; Gohan stood tense beside his father, his mind running back into automatic battle mode, his youthful ki flaring up, as did Krillin's; the pair did not know what to expect this time, though the two knew that they would not be so lucky in the future. There were no more Senzu beans, no more trump cards in their possession.

            Goku stared at Vegeta, fixated on his impossible foe; even with his restored strength, he had an sick feeling that he no longer stood any real chance against this alien invader… The man looked down at his son and best friend, who were once again ready to give their all; Goku felt a stirring of pride in his heart, and flared his own mighty ki, watching Vegeta rear back his right hand and then whip it into the sky.

            "Prepare to witness the full might of a true Saiyan warrior!" 


End file.
